Technical Field
Embodiments disclosed herein can be related to ophthalmic illumination systems. More specifically, embodiments described herein can relate to illuminating a surgical field, such as a patient's eye, with light having different angular profiles transmitted by multiple optical fibers of an illumination device.
Related Art
Ophthalmic microsurgical procedures can require precision cutting and/or removing of various body tissues of the patient's eye. During a surgical procedure, a user, such as a surgeon or other medical professional, can hold an endo-illuminator or an endo-illumination probe in one hand. During a vitrectomy procedure, for example, the surgeon can hold a vitrectomy probe in his or her other hand. The vitrectomy probe can be used to perform surgical maneuvers while the surgeon visualizes the patient's eye using the light provided by the endo-illuminator. The endo-illuminator can include a cannula inserted into the eye and an optical fiber approximately equal to the diameter of the cannula. Because endo-illuminators typically transmit wide-angle light, options for modifying the type of illumination within the eye can be limited.
Accordingly, there remains a need for improved devices, systems, and methods that allow the surgeon to illuminate the patient's eye with light having different angular profiles by addressing one or more of the needs discussed above.